Columbus doctor accused of diet-pill scheme, lying to FBI

OXFORD – Dr. Michael Alex White of Columbus faces an April 23 trial on eight federal charges related to an alleged diet-pill conspiracy.
White, 62, is accused on seven counts that he recklessly sold or distributed controlled drugs like Phentermine to people who didn’t need it.
Count 8 accuses him of lying to members of the Drug Enforcement Administration about the drugs, as well as that he never had sex with a patient to whom he’d prescribed the drug.
White’s indictment is dated Feb. 22 but just became public.
He pleaded not guilty Feb. 29 before Magistrate Judge David Sanders and is free on $10,000 bond.
His April 23 trial will be in Oxford before Chief Judge Michael P. Mills.
According to the indictment, Phentermine is “meant to be given to patients who have increased risks for morbidity and mortality related to their weight.”
White’s office is situated at 294 Chubby Drive.
White is accused of “routinely” prescribing the drug “with only a cursory medical examination” and in a manner “outside the court of professional practice.”
These incidents allegedly occurred from about Dec. 15, 2008, to Feb. 8, 2011.
If convicted, White faces loss of his Mississippi medical license and forfeiture of anything he may have gained from the proceeds of these allegations.
He also faces up to 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine.